Labor Employment Law Blog

In a decision issued this week, the California Supreme Court ruled that businesses must not discriminate against registered domestic partners by denying them benefits or services the business extends to spouses. To do so constitutes actionable discrimination under California's Unruh Act. In Koebke v. Bernardo Heights Country Club, issued August 1, 2005 by the California Supreme Court, the Court made clear that if a business offers a benefit or other special treatment to the spouses of its patrons, then the business must offer the same benefits or special treatment to the registered domestic partners of its patrons. The Court based its findings on the California Domestic Partner Rights and Responsibilities Act, which went into effect January 1, 2005.

While the Court's ruling did not apply specifically to employers or employment policies, the broad wording of the decision can be read to extend to a business' employment relationships as well as its relationships with its patrons or clients. Employers should review their benefits and leave policies to ascertain whether any benefits currently extend only to spouses, and not to domestic partners. Under the new Koebke decision, any such policies could open the employer to a claim for discrimination against a registered domestic partner.